The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1887-05-12

ENGLISH DEMOCRACY.
ABOUT THE LONDON
POPULAR NEWSPAPERS.
A Tone Of Intense Hostility to the Court
and the Aristocrscy-Irrsverent Conn
ment Upon the Ways and Doinss Of Roy.
alty-some Democratic Jubilee Odes.
The leading London dailies, with whose
names Americans are made familiar by the
cable dispatches, represent not the masses
of the people but the class which is des-
ignated as society" It is with this
same class also that the cable letters
which form feature Of the Sunday
editions of the large New York dailies
have principally to deal. Court recep-
tions, balls, fashion events and the latest
scandals make up the bulk Of their
topics.
There is In England an influential
field of journalism rarely heard Of in this
country, and which contains some Of the
most widely-circulated papers in the
country. Its tone is far different from
that of the higher-priced newspapers, and
one may look in vain for any trace of
that enthusiastic loyalty which Is reflected
in Tennyson's odes. On the contrary,
some of the most popular journals in
England are strongly democratic, and
frequently refer to the Queen and the
rest of the royal family in terms not SIM
ply of Indifference, but of absolute de-
rision and contempt. These papers are
rarely seen outside of England. They
are usually published on Sunday morn
ing and circulated among the working
people, but they are none the less influen-
tial on that account. The leading pc
riodical of this class is Reynolds Nesos-
paper, which adopts for its motto, printed
in large type on its front page, Lincoln's
phrase, Government of the people, by
the people, for the people" tits penny
paper Of eight pages, seven wide columns
to the page, and is literally stuffed with
news and information, and its circulation
is enormous, far exceeding that of the Lon
don Times. Although its space is ample
its contents are so extensive and varied
that its matter is mostly in solid nonpareil
type. The first page begins with lead
ing article in large type, which is re-
view of some current political topic,
written from strongly democratic stand
point, exceedingly free and sharp in its
criticisms upon the government. Then
follows compilation of foreign intelli-
gence from all over the world, matters of
special interest to working people being
given the greatest length. Reports Of
Parliament, sporting news and reports of
the police courts take up most of the re-
naming space. Aspecial feature is made
of notes on Parliament. in which the
right honorable members are handled in
very free and irreverent way. and a
great quantity Of information is given of
all subjects of current interest.
The editorial articles 60 straight to the
point and call spade spade, in the
most unrestrained way. A peculiar fea-
ture is double-leaded articles signed by
such old familiar names as Demos, Grac-
chus and the like which hit sledge-ham-
mer blows at the aristocracy and aristo-
cratic institutions. The style of these
articles will be better indicated by some
extracts.
Just at present the Queens jubilee is
the leading topic in London society, and
all sorts of funds are being gotten up to
commemorate the event in various ways.
There is no lack Of jubilee odes in Rey-
nolds' journal, but they differ greatly in
tone from Lord Tennyson's, while many
are better from a poetic point of view.
For instance, in one ode the Queen is
represented as soliloquizing on the
jubilee, and these lines are put in her
mouth:
My throne is built upon the rags and priva-
ton,
And the sad, glaring want which the
masses have felt.
worship my gold, yet tits my destination
To go to that place where it all soon will
melt.
Oh, Jubilee Lob, sad Jubilee!
The last straw will break up the game,
you will see.
The ode ends with this stirring appeal
to the people:
Ho, hol sound the trumpet, the people
awaken,
Proclaim to the masses their right to the
soil.
The time it doth hasten when fraud, over.
taken,
Must give back those rights of the true
Sous of toll
Oh, Jubilee!-for such Jubilee!
'Tis this that they aim for, and Right is
their plea.
Nothing is more exasperating to the
English people than the way in which
fat Offices at court and in the public SER
vice are given to the German relatives of
the Queen. This tendency is hit of in
the following stanza Of another dem
ocratic jubilee ode:
I've "Battenbergs'' and "Langenbergs,"
''Gleichens'' and "Leiningens" to gorge,
"Saxe Weimars," !" too, the "Strelitz' crew,
And our hero, Cousin George.